SG-62

The SG-62 (later: SG-62 Reissue and '62 SG Reissue) was Gibson's first ever reissue of an SG model. It was introduced in 1986, slotting between the Standard and newly reintroduced Custom (now based on the SG-62), and was produced until 1991. As the name suggests, it was an attempt at recreating the 1962 SG Standard. They are sometimes considered "Pre-Historic" reissues like the contemporary Les Paul reissues, but there are a couple differences. For one, the SG-62 was never ultimately replaced by a Historic Custom Shop model, nor was its direct replacement; the '61 Reissue, which went on to be produced alongside the Historic reissue introduced in 2000. The SG-62 also used the normal serial number system unlike Pre-Historic Les Pauls. That said, it's fair to say they were the closest SG equivalent of a Pre-Historic Les Paul.

Compared to the 1986-1991 SG Standard, the SG-62 had a slimmer neck, a more historically accurate pickguard, deeper beveling (particularly in the cutaways), the neck set at the 22nd fret with a '61 style heel joint, the traditional control layout, nickel plated hardware and an ABR-1 bridge. The major differences from a real '62 Standard are the lack of a vibrola (the stopbar tailpiece was not offered on an SG until 1973), the lack of a "Les Paul" script on the truss rod cover and the body shape, beveling and pickguard shape still being off. Curiously, in designing the SG-62, they reworked the body shape unnecessarily, as it was never changed in the first place. Mainly, they made it smaller with a narrower waist. The body shape and pickguard were fixed when it was replaced with the '61 Reissue about halfway through 1991. Curiously, advertisements and catalogs depicted what seems to be a more historically accurate prototype instead of the actual production model SG-62 until 1990 (with the exception of one 1988 Japanese catalog).

These guitars were advertised as having "the fastest neck in the world", and indeed, it is notoriously thin. While some original '60s SGs may have been that thin due to hand shaping, most were not. The neck on the '61 Reissue that replaced it became slightly thicker, mostly toward the heel end. The Cherry finish on SG-62s generally tended to be a darker red than the '61 Reissue. Angus Young was heavily featured in advertising for the SG-62, however he never played one onstage.

The SG-62 spawned off two models based on its body design; the SG Elite and SG 90. Also, a special version of the SG-62 was included in the 1988 Showcase Edition series.

Related:

SG-62[]

1986-1987:
- $899 MSRP
- $1,079 MSRP (w/ Kahler vibrola)
1988: $1,088-$1,139 MSRP
1989: $1,199 MSRP
1990:
- $1,249 MSRP
- $1,429 MSRP (w/ vibrola)

Body:

Beveled, solid Honduran Mahogany body
Angled heel
Nitrocellulose Lacquer finish

Neck:

1-pc quartersawn Honduran Mahogany
Set-in construction
- 3 degree angle
- Franklin Titebond 50 glue
- Joins body at 22nd fret
- '61 style heel
Slim Taper profile (.800/.860")
Indian Rosewood fretboard
- Trapezoid inlays
- 12" radius
Large Open Book headstock
- Resin impregnated fiberboard veneer
- Inlaid Mother of Pearl Gibson logo
  - Squared font style (1986-1987)
    - Sporadic use (1988-1991)
      
      1988
  - Classic font style (1986-1991)
- Inlaid Mother of Pearl crown
- "Made in U.S.A." stamp
- 17^o pitch
22 frets
24 ⁹/₁₆" scale
1 11/16" nut width

Binding:

Neck, single-ply
Thinner style
Fret-edge binding

Electronics:

Two Tim Shaw humbuckers (1986-1988)

1991
- AlNiCo V magnets
- ~7-8k Ohms D.C. resistance

Two Bill Lawrence "The Original" Humbuckers (1987-1990)
- AlNiCo V magnets
- ~8k (neck), 14k (bridge) Ohms D.C. resistance
- Circuit board baseplate
- A.K.A. "R-4 / L-6"

Two '57 Classic Humbuckers (1991)
- AlNiCo II magnets
- ~7.9k Ohms D.C. resistance
3-way switch
2 Vol, 2 Tone
- 300k Vol
- 100k Tone

Hardware:

Nickel Hardware
Schaller "Gibson Deluxe" tuning machines
- 14:1 ratio
- Green Keystone buttons
5-ply "Angel Wing" pickguard

Alpine White
Bell shaped truss rod cover
- 2-ply b/w
Black Reflector knobs w/ pointers
ABR-1 Tune-O-Matic bridge and stopbar tailpiece
Optional Kahler SuperTune vibrola (1983-1991)
- Locking nut
- "Gibson" branded

Finishes:

Heritage Cherry

Limited Runs:

Alpine White (1986-1991)

'61 Reissue Body Shape Comparison[]

The background image is a '61 Reissue and the outlines overlaid are from an SG-62 (scale is matched):

Showcase Edition[]

Limited run of 200 units for the USA and 50 for foreign markets. Released in April as part of a guitar-of-the-month series.

1988